Stackable knockdown wirebound container



July 12, 1966 P. o. BUCH 3,260,396

STACKABLE KNOCKDOWN WIREBOUND CONTAINER O riginaI Filed Dec. 10, 1962 IN V EN TOR.

BY Ph/Y/ 'o 054/0/2 M, M W

United States Patent 3,260,396 STACKABLE KNOCKDOWN WIREBOUND CONTAINER Philip 0. Buch, Rockaway, NJ., assignor to stapling Machines Co., Rockaway, N.J., a corporation of Delaware Original application Dec. 10, 1962, Ser. No. 243,248, now Patent No. 3,187,921, dated June 8, 1965. Divided and this application June 15, 1964, Ser. No. 375,079 3 Claims. (Cl. 217-43) This application is a division of my copending application Serial No. 243,248, filed December 10, 1962, Patent No. 3,187,921.

This invention relates to wirebound containers and particularly to a composite crate adapted for shipping berries and the like.

In general terms, the container of the present invention is formed from two separate units, a wirebound open framework shell and a liner unit of foldable sheet material such as prescored corrugated fiberboard. The wirebound shell consists of a four-section wirebound crate blank fabricated in conventional manner and having bottom, front and rear side sections with cleats extending longitudinally of the box blank adjacent its lateral edges and transversely extending slats or other face material stapled to the upper faces of the cleats, and a top section having only cleats and no slats. The four sections are foldably secured together by longitudinally extending binding wires positioned atop the lateral edges of the box blank and secured to the several sections by staples driven astride the binding wires, through the slats (in those sections which have slats) and into the cleats. After the blank has been folded into the form of an open-top container, cooperating loop fasteners which are provided at the opposite ends of the binding wires are interengaged at the closing corner of the container. The pre-scored foldable liner unit, of corrugated fiberboard or the like, is then inserted into the open top of the container, nesting within it to cover its ends and bottom, and, if desired, also provide a central partition.

The present invention also provides means for facilitating stacking of the containers. For this purpose, each end of the liner unit is provided with upwardly projecting tabs which are so arranged that when a similar container is stacked above, these tabs may be inserted between the slats of the upper container and into the space between the inner faces of the dents and the outer faces of the end portions of the liner unit at each end of the bottom section of the container above to key the containers against transverse movement relative to one another.

This combination of a foldable liner unit nested within a wirebound shell unit permits the use, in the wirebound container blank, of face material of a minimum thickness, thus providing an inexpensive, light-weight open-top container having a number of practical uses.

In the drawings:

FIGURE 1 is an isometric view of a wirebound container blank for use in a container embodying features of this invention.

FIGURE 2 is an isometric view of a corrugated fiberboard liner unit for use with the container blank of FIG- URE 1, with the liner unit being shown in full lines in its original unfolded condition and in broken lines after being folded, for insertion into the folded wirebound shell.

FIGURE 3 is an isometric view, at slightly enlarged scale, of the container assembled from the units of FIG- URES 1 and 2, with one portion shown broken away to reveal the tabs for aligning the containers when stacked.

In FIGURES 1 and 2 are shown the two separate units which are combined to form the container of the present invention. FIGURE 1 shows the wirebound box blank,

3,288,386 Patented July 12, 1966 which includes a bottom section 2, rear section 4, top section 8 and front section 6. The bottom, rear and front sections 2, 4 and 6 have slats 10 stapled to cleats 12 at the lateral edges of the box blank, while section 8 has cleats 14 only. The several sections are foldably secured together by binding wires 16 which extend longitudinally of the box blank adjacent its lateral edges and are secured thereto by staples 18 driven astride the binding wires 16 through the slats 18 and into the cleats 12 of sections 2, 4 and 6, while in section 8 the staples are driven over the binding wires 16 and directly into the upper surfaces of the cleats 14.

The several sections of the box blank are folded in the usual manner into box form and secured by the interengagement of loop fasteners 28 at opposite ends of each of the binding wires 16. The folded unit is then positioned with its open top section 8 upwardly, as shown in FIGURE 3 for insertion of the liner unit 22.

In FIGURE 2 the pre-scored corrugated fiberboard liner unit 22 is shown in full lines A in its initial flat condition prior to folding. As may be seen, the liner unit is rectangular in shape and has in its under surface, at its longitudinal center line, a transversely extending score line 24, while its upper surface has four score lines 26 spaced at appropriate intervals to facilitate folding the liner unit into the form illustrated in broken lines B, which includes a pair of upstanding ends 28 and an upstanding double-walled center partition 30. When thus folded, the liner unit is of such transverse dimensions as to fit snugly down into the open top of the folded wirebound unit, and nest within it, as shown in FIGURE 3.

The upper edges of the ends 28 of the liner unit 22 are so shaped as to provide upwardly projecting tabs 32, which serve as an aligning means when stacking containers above one another, as illustrated in FIGURE 3. The tabs 28 are of a width slightly less than the space between the slats 10 of the bottom section 2 of the container so that they may be inserted between the slats of the container above, and between the inner faces of the bottom cleats 12 and the outer faces of the ends 28 of the upper container, thus keying the two containers against transverse movement relative to one another.

As will be understood, the present invention thus provides an economical and light-weight yet practical container which is adapted for many uses, such as shipping a number of small baskets of berries or small, tender fruit. It will therefore be appreciated that the aforementioned and other apparent advantageous objectives have been achieved. However, it should be emphasized that the particular embodiments of the invention which are described herein and illustrated in the accompanying drawings are intended as merely illustrative of the principles of the invention and not as restrictive of its scope, which is limited only by the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A wirebound container comprising four sections having adjoining cleats at the lateral edges of the container, with slats stapled thereto on at least the rear, bottom and front sections, with the bottom section having two slats which are located near the rear and front corners of the container to leave a space between said slats across the central portion of said bottom section, with the several sections foldably secured together by binding wires stapled thereto and with the ends of each of said binding wires secured together at one corner of the container, and a unitary liner of foldable sheet material fitted into said container to cover the inner face of the bottom section, with the end portions of said liner being folded up perpendicularly to lie against the inner faces of the cleats at the ends of said container and close said ends, the upper edges of said end portions being provided with upwardly projecting aligning members of a width slightly less than the space between the slats on said bottom section whereby, when said container has a similar container stacked upon it, said aligning members may be inserted between the slats on the bottom section and between the inner faces of the cleats and the outer faces of the end portions of the liner of the container above to secure the two containers against transverse movement relative to one another.

2. A wirebound container comprising four sections having adjoining cleats at the lateral edges of the container, with slats stapled thereto on at least the rear, bottom and front sections, with the bottom section having two slats which are located near the rear and front corners of the container to leave a space between said slats across the central portion of said bottom section, with the several sections foldably secured together by binding wires stapled thereto and with the ends of each of said binding wires secured together at one corner of the container, and a unitary liner of foldable sheet material fitted into said container to cover the inner face of the bottom section, with the end portions of said liner being folded up perpendicularly to lie against the inner faces of the cleats at the ends of said container and close said ends, the upper edges of said end portions being formed to provide integral upwardly projecting tabs of a width slightly less than the space between the slats on said bottom section whereby, when said container has a similar container stacked upon it, said tabs may be inserted between the slats on the bottom section and between the inner faces of the cleats and the outer faces of the end portions of the liner of the container above to secure the two containers against transverse movement relative to one another.

3. A wirebound container comprising four sections having adjoining cleats at the lateral edges of the container, with slats stapled thereto on at least the rear, bottom and front sections, with the bottom section having two slats which are located near the rear and front corners of the container to leave a space between said slats across the central portion of said bottom section, with the several sections foldably secured together by binding wires stapled thereto and with the ends of each of said binding wires secured together at one corner of the container, and a unitary liner of foldable sheet material fitted into said container to cover the inner face of the bottom section, with the central section of said liner being folded upwardly to provide a double wall central partition, with the end portions of said liner being folded up perpendicularly to lie against the inner faces of the cleats at the ends of said container and close said ends, the upper edges of said end portions being provided with upwardly projecting aligning members of a width slightly less than the space between the slats on said bottom section whereby when said container has a similar container stacked upon it, said aligning members may be inserted between the slats on the bottom section and between the inner faces of the cleats and the outer faces of the end portions of the liner of the container above to secure the two containers against transverse movement relative to one another.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 12/1941 Tugel et a1. 2174O 1/1962 Davis.

' R. H. SCHWARTZ, Assistant Examiner. 

1. A WIREBOUND CONTAINER COMPRISING FOUR SECTIONS HAVING ADJOINING CLEATS AT THE LATERAL EDGES OF THE CONTAINER, WITH SLATS STAPLED THERETO ON AT LEAST THE REAR, BOTTOM AND FRONT SECTIONS, WITH THE BOTTOM SECTION HAVING TWO SLATS WHICH ARE LOCATED NEAR THE REAR AND FRONT CORNERS OF THE CONTAINER TO LEAVE A SPACE BETWEEN SAID SLATS ACROSS THE CENTRAL PORTION OF SAID BOTTOM SECTION, WITH THE SEVERAL SECTIONS FOLDABLY SECURED TOGETHER BY BINDING WIRES STAPLED THERETO AND WITH THE ENDS OF EACH OF SAID BINDING WIRES SECURED TOGETHER AT ONE CORNER OF THE CONTAINER, AND A UNITARY LINER OF FOLDABLE SHEET MATERIAL FITTED INTO SAID CONTAINER TO COVER THE INNER FACE OF THE BOTTOM SECTION, WITH THE END PORTIONS OF SAID LINER BEING FOLDED UP PERPENDICULARLY TO LIE AGAINST THE INNER FACES OF THE CLEATS OF THE ENDS OF SAID CONTAINER AND CLOSE SAID ENDS, THE UPPER EDGES OF SAID END PORTIONS BEING PROVIDED 